by Christina Nellemann

Would you like to enjoy camping without having to set up a tent or paying for the gas on a large RV or trailer? Many state parks and campgrounds offer small cabins where you can still enjoy the outdoors in comfort.

Last weekend, I visited McArthur-Burney Falls in northern California and the campground is home to 24 Cavco Cabins. They are insulated, have a locking front door, screened windows, beds, a roomy covered porch, and room outside for a tent, picnic table and a campfire. The cabins have propane heat but no electricity or plumbing. Several of the cabins are accessible for disabled campers.

Currently, the 12 smaller one-room cabins are $65 per night and include two single bunk beds and two extra mattresses.  The 12 larger two-room cabins are $85 per night and include four single bunk beds. There is plenty of space inside for chairs or additional sleeping bags on the floor.

Cavco Cabins are one model of Cavco Industries, Inc. based in Phoenix, AZ. Cavco is one of the largest producers of manufactured housing, park model and cabin vacation homes in the US, and has been in business since 1965. They have over 50 Rustic Cabin plans, 175 Park Model plans and over 25 Loft plans to choose from.

The Cabins come in several sizes: 16-22 feet, 23-29 feet and over 29 feet. There are also Bare Bones Cabins which will be found in most campgrounds. Cavco has built cabins for hundreds of campgrounds across the country. You can search for a Cavco Cabin in your area on their website.

Recently, Cavco has announced that they are going green. Cavco is one of the first RV manufacturers to make a recreational park trailer or park model that has solar panels. They are also offering these, plus other materials, on their standard building list:

• Recycled tires and axles.
• I-beams manufactured from scrap, recycled steel.
• J M A’s formaldehyde free fiberglass insulation
• Blow roof insulation
• Low VOC paints.
• PEX water systems (recyclable with no solvent connections)
• Energy Star appliances (most standard models and all up grades)
• Water saver toilets, tub and shower diverters

These green options will make it even easier to enjoy the great outdoors.

I want to extend a welcome to Christina Nellemann of Feline Design Inc. Christina has a passion for tiny houses and will become a weekly guest writer for the Tiny House Blog. I look forward to her insight into the tiny house and simple living world. To learn more visit Christina’s bio at Feline Design Inc.

Kent Griswold - Tiny House Blog

If you enjoyed this post, subscribe to our feed

Tortoise Shell Home

Model 1 - Sale

Originally $14,900 - Now $9,800

• Built tortoise shell tough
• Size 8×14
• Fully insulated, vinyl double-pane windows
• French front door
• 1/4″ fir wood-paneled walls
• Vinyl flooring
• Kitchen area has two base and two wall cabinets, plus sink, hotplate and refrigerator.
• Bathroom has 4′ shower, toilet and wet sink.
• Energy-efficient demand hot water heater.

Contact Bill at Tortoise Shell Homes by email:

info@tortoiseshellhome.com

or call  707-206-7581

Tell Bill the Tiny House Blog told you about it.

Interior

Kitchen

Loft

If you enjoyed this post, subscribe to our feed

This last weekend I had the privilege of attending Jay Shafer’s Building and Design workshops in Sebastopol, California. We met at his home, in an apple orchard on the outskirts of town, gathering on the deck of his landlord’s home.

The day began with a tour of Jay’s home to give participants a look at the finished product. Most in attendance seemed to have some building experience and know the general terminology of building.
After the tour, Jay took us through the building process to the point of the framing, exterior walls, and weather wrap were on the house. We also discussed trailers and the process of mounting the home onto the trailer.

Workshop on the Deck

In the afternoon Building Workshop session Jay presented the details of how to complete and finish the tiny house. He discussed the need for precise work and the fact that the finishing of the interior often takes longer than the framing and roofing and siding of the outside of the structure.

The workshop progressed through each stage of the building process, and kept the flow of the workshop in this manner. Although not a hands-on workshop, Jay provides a illustrated color workbook that is detailed with photos, floor plans, and a complete list of tools required to build your tiny house.

The workshop is very organic and improves with suggestions and feedback from participants.

Jay later showed us the Vardo where Greg, President and co-founder of the Small House Society has been staying on this break in the West Coast tour and answered questions about its design and construction.

Exploring the Vardo

At the end of the day Jay gave a second tour of his home. Having gone through the workshop the participants had a few new questions after having more knowledge about the building process.

The second Tumbleweed Tiny House workshop is a design workshop. We had a very small group for this one, only three of us. The day started out very cool and we ended up moving from the deck into Jay’s Epu. It was very comfortable and was neat to experience a couple of hours in the space of the tiny house. We sat five fairly comfortably when Greg joined us for a short time.

Jay began the day with an introduction to the “art” of architecture. He discussed the influence of sacred geometry in design. We than went into more aspects of design and than broke for lunch.

Design Workshop in Jay’s Epu

After lunch we came back and began our own designs. With graph paper and pencil we spent the next couple of hours designing our own tiny house. The last hour was spent with Jay critiquing our work and giving suggestions

This was a very worthwhile weekend and I would recommend that anyone who is serious about living and/or building a tiny home take this workshop.

To view more pictures of this workshop visit Greg’s special blog.

Photo Credits: Gregory Paul Johnson

If you enjoyed this post, subscribe to our feed